dream up
phr. v..phr. v.. to invent a new idea, plan, or story, especially one that is very creative or unusual.
phr. v.. to conceive or invent an idea, plan, or story through the use of imagination; often implies the result is elaborate, fanciful, or slightly unrealistic.
She managed to dream up a great excuse for being late.
The marketing team needs to dream up a new campaign to attract younger customers before the summer starts.
It is difficult to imagine how the architect managed to dream up such a complex and gravity-defying structure using only basic materials.
usually followed by a noun representing a creative product like a plan, scheme, or story.
contrast with 'think of' or 'invent'; 'dream up' suggests a higher degree of imagination or even a touch of eccentricity in the thought process.
He dreamed up of a new machine.He dreamed up a new machine.the phrasal verb 'dream up' is transitive and takes a direct object without the extra preposition 'of'.